Coffees Of India
Indian Coffees and Plantations: Are they Organic or Fair Trade?
Indian coffee plantations are shade grown at high altitudes in the hills of South India. The plantations are shade grown along with natural vegetation of the area. The origin of Indian coffee goes back to the 18th century when coffee plants were brought here from Yemen. All of the coffee cherries are hand picked by plantation workers and sun dried. Plantations using the wet-process use only water from natural springs and lakes. Indian coffee plantations do not use chemicals however there is no organic certification process along the USDA guidelines. Indian plantations also meet a standard for quality of life of workers as mandated by the government of India very much along the lines that organizations like Transfair try to achieve with Fair Trade movement.
Indian Coffee Bean Varietals
Indian Monsoon AA Coffee
Monsooned Coffee is a unique coffee from India that was discovered on ship trade routes from India to England. When the sailing ships carrying coffee were exposed to the moist monsoon winds, the coffee swelled up as they absorbed more moisture and changed color to straw yellow. Today the coffee crop goes through a controlled 'monsooning' process in ventilated warehouses exposed to the monsoon winds till the coffee gains moisture to 16-20%. A monsooned coffee cup is aromatic and full of character even though it is a milder non acidic coffee. The coffee has a full body and strong chocolate tones that blend well other lighter spices tones of cardamom and cinnamon that makes in popular in Northern Europe, We only buy the highest AA grade coffee.
Indian Royal Mysore AA and Mysore Nuggets Extra Bold
These are washed Arabicas grown in the south central regions of India that have a tradition of growing coffee for centuries (Chikmagalur, Coorg, Biligiris, Bababudangiris and Shevaroys). This is a rare, premium coffee and truly represents the best quality coffee from India. In the cup, the coffee exhibits full aroma, medium to good body, and good acidity. These are mostly shade grown coffees where plantations have several spice trees and so the flavor is hinged around that of dark bittersweet chocolate with a hint of spices like vanilla and even mild pepper along with fruity undertones.
Orginal Moksha Blends
Since our emphasis was on Indian and Kenyan coffees, we have crafted 3 blends based on the Indian coffees we carry that are, Bold Gold, Indian Tiger Blend and the Dancing Shiva.
